Yarn feeder

ABSTRACT

A portable yarn feeder that is attachable to an object and provides a secure and constricted environment in which yarn can be fed freely without the yarn tangling or becoming damaged. The feeder includes a housing that has an exterior sidewall with a first opening formed therein and interior walls that are contiguous to each other and an inner surface of the exterior wall and include a second opening formed therein that is offset from the first opening.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This patent application claims benefit U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/732,721, filed Sep. 18, 2018, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety as part of the present disclosure.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure generally relates to knitting or crocheting and more specifically to a portable feeder for yarn or the like that provides a secure and constricted environment through which the material can flow freely without becoming tangled.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

When knitting or crocheting, it is easy for yarn or the like to get caught on an object (e.g., zipper, button, rough edges of a surface or garment, etc.). To prevent potentially damaging yarn, yarn feeders can be used. These can include, for example, yarn bowls, yarn balls and yarn bags. Yarn bowls can include a spiral cutout to assist in keeping yarn or the like in place tensioned. Yarn balls can be housed in a case and through which yarn is fed. Yarn bags can house yarn and yarn can be fed through a hole/rivet in the bag. However, all of these feeders have drawbacks.

Yarn bowls are heavy, bulky and not conducive to knitting on the go. Yarn balls typically include a friction-free area that is spaced from a ball of yarn and from a surface on which the ball may rest. Because of the space between the yarn ball and knitter, yarn can easily get caught on a rough surface. Yarn cannot be removed from a yarn bag without cutting the yarn. Thus, there is a need for a portable feeder that eliminates such drawbacks.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure is directed to portable yarn feeder that is attachable to an object and provides a secure and constricted environment in which yarn can be fed freely without the yarn tangling or becoming damaged.

The feeder is comprised of a housing that includes an exterior sidewall with a first opening formed therein and interior walls that are contiguous to each other and an inner surface of the exterior wall and include a second opening formed therein that is offset from the first opening.

The feeder is designed to allow yarn to be arranged therein without slipping out while at the same time, when desired, allows yarn to be removed therefrom with the need to cut or damage the yarn.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a known yarn bowl;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a known yarn ball;

FIG. 3A-3D are perspective views of known yarn bags;

FIG. 4A and 4B are perspective views of an exemplary embodiment of a feeder of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are perspective views of the feeder of FIGS. 4A and 4B arranged in a cutout of a material that can, for example, be part of a bag;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are perspective views of the feeder of FIGS. 4A and 4B attached to a piece of material of a bag;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a the feeder of FIGS. 4A and 4B attached to cord that can be worn, for example, as a necklace or a bracelet; and

FIGS. 8A-8D depict exemplary embodiments of various feeder shapes.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

With reference now to the drawings, embodiments of a yarn feeder 400 of the present invention will be described.

FIGS. 1-3D depict known yarn feeders 100, 200, 300A-300D. FIG. 1 illustrates a yarn bowl 100, in which yarn can be arranged and that includes a spiral cutout 102 through which the yarn can be fed. However, such yarn feeders are not easily portable because they are commonly heavy and/or bulky. FIG. 2 illustrates a yarn ball 200. Yarn balls typically include a friction-free area that is spaced from a ball of yarn and from a surface on which the ball may rest. Because of the space between the yarn ball and knitter, yarn can easily get caught on a rough surface. FIGS. 3A-3C illustrate yarn bags 300A, 300B, 300C, 300D, respectively, in which yarn can be housed. These bags 300A, 300B, 300C, 300D include a hole/rivet 302A, 302B, 302C, 302D through which yarn can be fed. However, once yarn has been threaded through the hole/rivet 302A, 302B, 302C, 302D, the yarn cannot be removed without cutting the yarn. Additionally, yarn bags 300A, 300B, 300C, 300D are not compact and in turn easily portable.

FIGS. 4A and 4B depict perspective views of an embodiment of a yarn feeder 400 of the present invention. The yarn feeder 400 can, for example, be circular, square or another shape and can include an exterior opening 402 with curved surfaces to allow yarn to easily be treaded therethrough and removed from the feeder 400, when desired, without having to cut or damage the yarn. The feeder 400 also has an interior shape 404 with an opening 406 offset from the exterior opening 402 through which the yarn is fed to maintain tension on the yarn.

As shown in embodiments in FIGS. 8A-8D, the shape 404 can be, for example, a heart, a swirl, a star a tree. However, the shape can be of any desired configuration that may be known or become known. The feeder can, for example, be made of a smooth, low-friction material such as metal, plastic or ceramic.

FIGS. 5A-6B are various views of the feeder 400 fixed directly to a piece of material, or flap. As shown in FIGS. 5A-6B, the feeder 400 can be arranged in a flap within, for example, a handbag or a backpack. Here, a ball of yarn can be arranged in the bag and fed, friction-free and a long a controlled and predictable path, through the feeder so as to not get caught or tangled in a zipper or other features of the bag. In use, the ball of yarn will remain securely arranged within the bag while the feeder 400 allows for the yarn to be feeder to a user outside of the bag. In an embodiment, the flap and or the feeder 400 can be removeable from the bag. For example, the flap can be zipped, buttoned, snapped or attached by VELCRO to the bag and/or the feeder 400 can be housed via a friction fit to the flap.

In use, yarn is first fed through the exterior opening 402 of the feeder 400 and then through the interior opening 406. When the yarn is pulled at an upward angle, the yarn “catches” (or is seated) in the top of the interior shape 404. Seating the yarn in the feeder 400 through the two openings 402, 406, allows the yarn to be pulled through the feeder 400 without slipping out of the feeder 400.

The placement of the feeder 400 should not be limited to bags and can incorporated into any portable object. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the feeder 400 is incorporated into a necklace, but is not substantially encompassed by or attached to a piece of material. Rather, the exterior of the feeder 400 is wholly exposed to the environment. As shown, in FIG. 7 the feeder 400 is fixed to a cord 702 and can be worn as a necklace or bracelet. Here, a yarn ball can rest is a user's lap and could then be threaded through the feeder 400 which also acts as a decorative pendant.

Although this invention has been disclosed in the context of certain embodiments and examples, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the invention extends beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments to other alternative embodiments and/or uses of the invention and obvious modifications and equivalents thereof. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. In addition, while several variations of the embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail, other modifications, which are within the scope of this invention, including, but not limited to, the substitutions of equivalent features, materials, or parts, will be readily apparent to those of skill in the art based upon this disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A yarn feeder, comprising: a housing delimited at an outer periphery thereof and including a first opening at the outer periphery and a second opening, offset from the first opening, formed in an interior space of the housing.
 2. The yarn feeder of claim 1, wherein the housing that has an exterior sidewall that includes an inner and outer surface that is spaced from the inner surface with the first opening formed therein and a plurality of interior walls that are contiguous to each other and the inner surface of the exterior wall and include the second opening formed therein.
 3. The yarn feeder of claim 1, wherein the housing includes a sidewall having an inner surface that is spaced from and mirror opposite an outer surface.
 4. The yarn feeder of claim 1, wherein the housing is comprised of at least one of a metal, plastic and ceramic.
 5. A method for feeding yarn comprising providing a housing delimited at an outer periphery thereof and including a first opening at the outer periphery and a second opening, offset from the first opening, formed in an interior space of the housing; feeding a piece of yarn through the first opening; and feeding the piece of yarn through the second opening. 